It's All So Different Now

[k-herm]

I was reading squitty's thread regarding the Quality Inn on I-Drive and it got me thinking.

You see, recently my wife and I took our family to Orlando for the first time. 18 years ago, my DW and I spent 2 weeks there for our honeymoon and vowed that when we had kids and they were old enough, we would return.

This time we were in a villa on Poinciana Blvd, but prevoiusly [17 years ago] we had stayed at what was known then as "The Low Q" - the Quality Inn on I-Drive. Of course, we had to take a look at this on our recent trip...but neither of us could recognise anything in the area!!

Obviously things are going to change during such a long period, but really it was just SO different to what we remembered. I had a memory of the QI having a car park at the front [complete with 90 year old security guard] and that that part of I-Drive had a grassy central reservation. There was a restaurant opposite which was queued out one night so we went to a Pizza Hut on the same side as the QI. I think we saw that the Hut is still there, but can't be sure if was the same one.

The whole of I-Drive actually looked different...Obviously the Convention Centre wasn't there before but, in general, we agreed that the whole area was more downmarket than we remembered. I suppose we were a lot younger and one's memory does weird things sometimes.

Another thing while I'm in this reflective mood is the Disney rides which aren't there now. I did touch on this on another thread a while ago but do you remember the likes of: 20,000 Leagues; Mission to Mars; Swan Boats; Horizons? Oh, there must be so many more.

 

[disneyholic family]

when our kids were toddlers (a long long time ago -they're now 21 and 18), we stayed in the Days Suites in lake buena vista (just across from the WDW entrance that leads to DTD)...
the hotel no longer exists.....i don't know when it was torn down, but it was some years back.....
when we stayed there, there were only a very few, very inexpensive hotels in that area (a days inn and days suites right next to each other)...
they were wonderful for what they were....we paid $29/night for a one bedroom suite with kitchen.....those were the days....
it had a simple motel type pool, but for a young family just starting out, with limited finances, it was heavenly....

 

[Obi Wan Kenobi]

The first times we went to Orlando, the 27 was just orange groves all the way to baseball city. Now......

 

[disneyholic family]

i was thinking in terms of hotels/motels that no longer exist (torn down and replaced by other hotels/motels)..

if i think about when i first went to WDW, that was in April 1974....i had just finished my first year at Johns Hopkins University....two room-mates and i drove down to WDW (in the infamous Ford Pinto) and camped out in a little pup tent in Fort Wilderness....at the time there was just FW, the CR and the Poly....
my mom, dad and sister came down for the second week and so i got a bit of an upgrade....from a pup tent in FW to the best suite in the CR.....nice travelling with mom and dad.....
besides the CR, Poly and FW i think there was only the Magic Kingdom....
was Epcot already open then?.....i don't remember.....
that was the first of my annual visits (and some years more than that).....
all the things that have come and gone inside WDW are unfortunately too numerous to mention.....but the ones i miss most? Hunchback of Notre Dame, the Diamond Horseshoe Review, the Melvin the Moose Breakfast, etc etc etc.....

 

[Miffy2003]

DH was heartbroken when Mission to Mars closed. When he was about 12 and went on it, he really thought they had gone to Mars (I hope he doesn't see this post or I am in trouble)

Bits of the 192 looked very different to how I had remembered them (first visit 1993, second 2002) but that could just be my dodgy memory!

 

[JohnnySharp2]

We have stayed at some budget hotels over the years, including the QI and QI Plaza on I-drive.

Although we now stay in villas the hotels we stayed at more recently were of better quality such as the Rosen Center.
It does seem strange remembering some of the more basic accomodation we stayed in, we have not become snobbish or feel that we necessarily deserve better - guess we just want more comfortable surroundings.

I-drive has lost it's appeal for us - the fact that Pointe Orlando has dwindled away a bit just confirms that.

To be honest I do not think we could stay on I-drive again - we have enjoyed some good times on there, however, especially now we have a son we are a bit more choosy about where we stay.
Naturally no offence intended at those who do stay in budget hotels and have a perfectly good holiday.

 

[tink too]

I, too stayed at the Wet 'n' Wild end of I-Drive in the early 80's. We ate at Granny's Kitchen and Long John Silvers quite regularly - both have been gone for years.

There was only MK, Sea World, Circus World and Wet 'n' Wild in Orlando the first time we visited. Epcot didn't come along until 1983, I think!

Kennedy Space Centre, Busch Gardens and Cypress Gardens were all open then, though - I still remember those bus tours!

 

[paulh]

yep i-drive has gone down market its a tacky sort of blackpool meets benidorm place now we stayed there years ago 12 drove down it last year as was shocked to be english its gone down that road street sellers ect all day english breakfasts makes me glatd that we found dvc so we can stay on property not that i am being snoby we have stayed elsewhere in florida and its not as bad as i-drive would rather stay 192 if i had too
Paulh

 

[k-herm]

yep i-drive has gone down market its a tacky sort of blackpool meets benidorm place now we stayed there years ago 12 drove down it last year as was shocked to be english its gone down that road street sellers ect all day english breakfasts makes me glatd that we found dvc so we can stay on property not that i am being snoby we have stayed elsewhere in florida and its not as bad as i-drive would rather stay 192 if i had too
Paulh

"Blackpool meets Benidorm"...well put. We certainly thought the same. In itself, that's not so bad. We have stayed in Blackpool and had a great time, but I-Drive's not what we expected it to be. The 192 we actually thought wasn't much better - more American but still run down in places with cheap shops and restaurants and closed down units.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

"Blackpool meets Benidorm"...well put. We certainly thought the same. In itself, that's not so bad. We have stayed in Blackpool and had a great time, but I-Drive's not what we expected it to be. The 192 we actually thought wasn't much better - more American but still run down in places with cheap shops and restaurants and closed down units.

I do not disagree too much, we always stay in a villa just off the 192.
To be honest a choice between i-drive and the 192 is no contest...prefer Kissimmee every time...living 3 miles outside Blackpool maybe that makes me a good judge?

 

[cazzie]

I have only stayed on the I Drive but for us it suits our needs as we don't drive over there. I am trying to persuade my DH to stay onsite but he doesn't seem too keen unless of course it's somewhere like the Polynesian and there is no way I am going to spend that much on a hotel so it could well be the I Drive again as I am not sure of the transport in Kissimmee. I suppose from my point of view never having been until this year I have nothing to compare it with and to be honest it wasn't as bad as I had expected, there are real tacky parts but some of it is quite nice.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

I have only stayed on the I Drive but for us it suits our needs as we don't drive over there. I am trying to persuade my DH to stay onsite but he doesn't seem too keen unless of course it's somewhere like the Polynesian and there is no way I am going to spend that much on a hotel so it could well be the I Drive again as I am not sure of the transport in Kissimmee. I suppose from my point of view never having been until this year I have nothing to compare it with and to be honest it wasn't as bad as I had expected, there are real tacky parts but some of it is quite nice.

Ths south side of I-drive is quite nice, the Rosen Center is a great hotel and quite like this area, it's just a shame that Pointe Orlando has dwindled away a bit.
I think the further up the north side you get the tackier it get's.

 

[floridalol]

Our first trip to Orlando was in 1987 and we stayed at the Quality Inn. It certainly looks in need of a facelift now though at the time it was a good basic place to stay. I-Drive was certainly a quieter place then as well but I like I-Drive with all the hustle and bustle. The lower end is certainly more appealing but for me the range of good hotels and restaurants is unbeatable. You can walk to many restaurants enabling me to have an alcoholic drink or two so that's one good reason. We've stayed on 192 and didn't particualrly like it because if you want to do anything in the evening you have to drive and we've done the villa option which for me is another no-no, I like to enjoy the atmosphere of a bar in the evening. I've never stayed on-site and never will it's too much like a holiday camp feel to me and would be too much overkill and I like the feeling of driving into the parks each day although I acknowledge it's a good option for families with younger children. It's a good job that we don't all feel the same otherwise getting rooms booked up would be a nightmare!

 

[JohnnySharp2]

We've stayed on 192 and didn't particualrly like it because if you want to do anything in the evening you have to drive and we've done the villa option which for me is another no-no, I like to enjoy the atmosphere of a bar in the evening. I've never stayed on-site and never will it's too much like a holiday camp feel to me and would be too much overkill and I like the feeling of driving into the parks each day although I acknowledge it's a good option for families with younger children. It's a good job that we don't all feel the same otherwise getting rooms booked up would be a nightmare!

I agree it would be a nightmare if we all liked the same thing.

Our son is Autistic which is part of the reason we switched to a villa, he is a lovely bonny active boy but just cannot talk.
Having the extra room/cooking facilities/private pool/VCR are vital for us and we find that we can relax too which we cannot always do at home.

We have stayed at the Rosen Center and loved it there, however, our needs have changed now and cannot see us ever going back to hotels again.

I am a bit anti I-drive, I know there are comparisons with the 192 but for us I-drive is an area we just tend to avoid - although I do love driving passed the Rosen as our son was just a young baby when we stayed there - it does bring back good memories.

I fully agree about the driving though, it is the one down side to a villa in that you have to drive everywhere. I also sometimes find myself going out on my own in the evening as Joshua is usually tired by then, and often just stays in with my wife.
Even though I always say before the holiday we will go out as often as possible in the evening, Joshua often just wants to wind down, watch videos and play in the pool.
We have thought about DVC but at the moment it's not for us.

 

[disneyholic family]

I agree it would be a nightmare if we all liked the same thing.

Our son is Autistic which is part of the reason we switched to a villa, he is a lovely bonny active boy but just cannot talk.
Having the extra room/cooking facilities/private pool/VCR are vital for us and we find that we can relax too which we cannot always do at home.

We have stayed at the Rosen Center and loved it there, however, our needs have changed now and cannot see us ever going back to hotels again.

I am a bit anti I-drive, I know there are comparisons with the 192 but for us I-drive is an area we just tend to avoid - although I do love driving passed the Rosen as our son was just a young baby when we stayed there - it does bring back good memories.

I fully agree about the driving though, it is the one down side to a villa in that you have to drive everywhere. I also sometimes find myself going out on my own in the evening as Joshua is usually tired by then, and often just stays in with my wife.
Even though I always say before the holiday we will go out as often as possible in the evening, Joshua often just wants to wind down, watch videos and play in the pool.
We have thought about DVC but at the moment it's not for us.

have you tried the onsite villas?...we love Old Key West and stay there at least part of the time during extended visits to WDW....the 2 BR there is huge and lets us spread out (and DH works every day while we're in WDW, so this way he can be nice and comfortable in the living room, working and still together with us as we do the couch potato thing in front of the tv (actually while we unfry our brains from the 1000 degree heat of Orlando in the summer...)....

is that a picture of your son (in your signature)?...very cute and sweet looking....i'm sorry about the autism.......i'm never really sure what that means, since there are so many different conditions that seem to be defined as autism........my sister's nephew, i think about the same age as your son, is autistic...but i do believe he can speak, though not at all well........he too is very beautiful....and with a sweet disposition.....his parents home school their older daughter together with him.....she's not autistic...in fact, somewhat of a genius.......i'm not sure why they home school her...perhaps because they home school him and want them to be together......in any case, in the states, home schooling's quite popular....

 

[JohnnySharp2]

have you tried the onsite villas?...we love Old Key West and stay there at least part of the time during extended visits to WDW....the 2 BR there is huge and lets us spread out (and DH works every day while we're in WDW, so this way he can be nice and comfortable in the living room, working and still together with us as we do the couch potato thing in front of the tv (actually while we unfry our brains from the 1000 degree heat of Orlando in the summer...)....

is that a picture of your son (in your signature)?...very cute and sweet looking....i'm sorry about the autism.......i'm never really sure what that means, since there are so many different conditions that seem to be defined as autism........my sister's nephew, i think about the same age as your son, is autistic...but i do believe he can speak, though not at all well........he too is very beautiful....and with a sweet disposition.....his parents home school their older daughter together with him.....she's not autistic...in fact, somewhat of a genius.......i'm not sure why they home school her...perhaps because they home school him and want them to be together......in any case, in the states, home schooling's quite popular....

Hi Beth - we had a look around the Boardwalk on our last trip and we have been thinking of buying into DVC, we are considering staying there for a few nights next August when we go for 3 weeks - already have a villa booked for 2. Joshua is an early riser, he is always up before 5 , hence we have always been wary of disturbing the nieghbours so to speak, we do not have any such problems in a villa.
Also with both of us working full time we get the chance to relax a bit which we do not always get at home. Josh loves water and a private pool is just so good to have.
However, he doesn't get the chance to mix with other children as much and also you are a bit isolated in the evenings sometimes - overall though a villa is ideal for our needs. We also take some US format videos/dvds with us (about 20!) so that Josh can watch them when he isn't playing in the pool etc....He also loves it in the car and gets excited when we approach Disney and Universal. He knows a lot, remembers a lot but just cannot tell us.

We think he is sweet too - we are lucky he is a bonny lad. You are right Autism is very complicated, he basically cannot talk and has learning difficulties...however, he can communicate in many other ways and does makes sounds and understands a lot of what we say, he is also extremely mobile and active...we get so much pleasure out of seeing him have such a good time on hoilday, so much so that all the theme park visits are tailored to his favourite rides, I very rarely go on any other than the rides he likes - but if he is happy so are we.
There are a lot of children with special needs at his school whose condition is much worse so we in some ways think we are lucky, unfortunatley Josh also has Epilepsy, although we have a wonder drug that has kept that under control for over 2 years now.
There are a lot of children who have special needs, but they are all 'special' really and our lad certainly is - he is spoilt rotten - we go to Orlando many times just so that he can enjoy himself whilst he is still young.
Thanks for the kind words....

 

[wicket2005]

What an interesting thread, it is lovely finding out about 'old' Orlando. I don't have any 'old' stories to tell because I only went in 1996 for the first time.

I have stayed in two villas though and have to agree with Johnny that they are the ideal way to spend a vacation. All that extra space.

We stayed on IDrive for the first time this year, in the Rosen Centre, and loved the hotel. We only ventured a little bit north on it for the Pirate Cove and Subway, the bit we stayed in was fine.

 

[JohnnySharp2]

What an interesting thread, it is lovely finding out about 'old' Orlando. I don't have any 'old' stories to tell because I only went in 1996 for the first time.

I have stayed in two villas though and have to agree with Johnny that they are the ideal way to spend a vacation. All that extra space.

We stayed on IDrive for the first time this year, in the Rosen Centre, and loved the hotel. We only ventured a little bit north on it for the Pirate Cove and Subway, the bit we stayed in was fine.

We like the Rosen Center too Bev- if we were still staying in hotels it would probably still be our choice.